


honey, make this easy

by darlingwendy



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Royalty, Angst and Feels, Arranged Marriage, M/M, Prince Sugawara Koushi, Star-crossed, but not to each other!!!!!, valet daichi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-23
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-14 01:14:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,917
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29660190
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darlingwendy/pseuds/darlingwendy
Summary: The wind tenderly lifted Sugawara’s hair, giving him a crown of floating silver. The sun was eager to light him. He glowed, some otherworldly creature -- no, not otherworldly, solidly of this world; he knew, better than anyone, that Sugawara was human and touchable and true. But to everyone else, he was the crown prince, and no one would ever believe that Sugawara shared his bed with a valet and kissed him sweetly on the mouth and said, in all combination of words but the plainest, that he loved him.--Royalty AU. Prince Sugawara, his faithful attendant Daichi, and a world-shattering piece of news.
Relationships: Sawamura Daichi/Sugawara Koushi
Comments: 4
Kudos: 16





	honey, make this easy

**Author's Note:**

> if u read the snippet of this i posted before, uh, here's the rest. who doesn't want some light royalty au angst? huh? just me? title from "it will come back" by hozier!

“If I fall, they’ll have your head.” Sugawara’s tone was light, airy, as if he’d been commenting on the excellent riding weather or the color of his mare. The prince did everything effortlessly, but especially speech. His voice always lilted to the tune of humor, a charming and effervescent tone that never belied his thoughts. If Daichi wanted to know what the prince was thinking, he had to look into his eyes. The opportunity for that often did not present itself. But now that they were nearly alone, standing just outside the stables, Sugawara broke tradition once more and turned his eyes towards Daichi. 

Sugawara’s eyes were amber – not just in color, but in texture. They were immobilizing; if Daichi stared at them long enough, he might become trapped. There were worse ways to go. In the glow of them now sparked mischief. This was the look Sugawara gave him when Daichi was breathless, gasping, looking down at Sugawara nestled against expensive sheets as the silver-haired boy gripped his jaw and told him how good he was. Daichi was not expecting to see this look in daylight, but he had become accustomed to the unexpected in his time serving the prince. If anything, he’d grown to look forward to it. He made sure his face remained passive, a pleasant smile on his face as he nodded.

Sugawara smiled. There were very few people in the kingdom who knew that Sugawara’s smile had the same shape as his shoulder blade. Daichi might have been the only one. Now, in the sunlight, Sugawara’s smile arched like his back.

“Don’t worry,” he added, eyes crinkling with a faux innocence. “I’m a very good rider.”

In his earliest days as a valet, this would have ruined Daichi. He’d spent those early days following Sugawara around with his heart in his hands, trying desperately not to drop it while balancing the hundred other things Sugawara tossed carelessly over his shoulder. Now, of course, his heart rested firmly inside Sugawara’s gentle grip. It kept his hands free for the myriad of other things the prince liked Daichi to carry. He glanced over the fields. No one was looking at them – a rare occurrence in the Miyagi castle – and Daichi took the opportunity. Swiftly, he reached over, his fingers deftly slipping underneath Sugawara’s many layers, to pinch at the skin underneath. His hand was back at his side before Sugawara finished jumping.

“Daichi!” The prince exclaimed, sounding absolutely scandalized and looking absolutely delighted.

“Yes, my liege?” Daichi replied. Sugawara laughed.

“Help me up.”

*

Daichi thought Suga did many things admirably. He was a good statesman, knew the names of every person who worked inside the castle, kept track of their moods and needs and requests. He was a good son, a good speaker, knew just how to run his fingers through Daichi’s hair to get him to sleep. And, he was right. He was a very good rider. He looked stately atop his horse, slowing long enough to pause by some nobleman’s son or nephew or squire - Daichi wasn’t good at keeping track of the faces nor the names; Sugawara was constantly rescuing him. The wind tenderly lifted Sugawara’s hair, giving him a crown of floating silver. The sun was eager to light him. He glowed, some otherworldly creature -- no, not otherworldly, solidly of this world; he knew, better than anyone, that Sugawara was human and touchable and true. But to everyone else, he was the crown prince, and no one would ever believe that Sugawara shared his bed with a valet and kissed him sweetly on the mouth and said, in all combination of words but the plainest, that he loved him. 

Sugawara laughed at something the nobleman said, his head tossing back in an ardent expression of joy, and Daichi felt his heart seize in his chest. The prince turned his head, eyes catching Daichi’s, and he smiled.

Everyone else could rot. Daichi didn’t need anyone to believe him. The crown prince was real, and he loved him. 

“Sawamura.” The gentle voice startled him. He spun around, quickly, bowing low out of instinct. 

“Lady Shimizu,” he said as he rose. It was worthless to attempt to piece himself back together. Lady Shimizu was, above all things, beautiful. Her perception far surpassed her beauty. Daichi had yet to figure out if it was decorum or delicacy that made her kind enough to never mention what she noticed, but most of the time he was too relieved to think about the sort of things she knew. 

“My lady has come to deliver news to her son.” She gestured behind him, where the queen was gliding along the grass, an arm outstretched towards her son. Daichi gulped, dropping his gaze into the grass. He peered up, slowly, through his eyelashes. The queen had approached Sugawara now, and they were clasping hands, porcelain cherubs in the springtime sun. 

“What is the news?” Daichi asked. It was both decorum and delicacy that made Shimizu treat him as an equal. Her tone was polite as she replied, but he could hear the thrumming string of kindness underneath it, the kind that accompanies consolation. 

“The prince is to be married. His suitor arrives in two weeks.”

Daichi watched Sugawara stiffen as his lady mother delivered the news. His smile froze in place, but even at a distance, Daichi could tell the warmth had left his eyes. The prince let go of his mother’s hands long enough to slide off his horse. Daichi wasn’t sure he was breathing. The cool satin of Lady Shimizu’s glove landed on his wrist, and all at once, he was slammed back into his body. He couldn’t look at her. He couldn’t take his eyes of the prince. The prince. The prince. The prince had been his for so many seasons, the crushing blue of winter, the blazing green of summer. It was hard to believe the pink of spring would be what did them in. Sugawara loved the spring. Daichi loved Sugawara. Two weeks.

“Sawamura,” Lady Shimizu said, not unkindly. He blinked, reluctantly turning towards her. She held up a small silk handkerchief. When he took it, he realized his hands were shaking. There was nothing she could say, so she said nothing, and for that, he was grateful. He clutched at the silk. The ground beneath him was blurring, tears pooling in his eyes and turning the whole world to water. 

“I must attend to my lady,” she said softly. “Keep the handkerchief.” 

“Thank you,” he managed, voice pressing against the wall of his clenched teeth. He didn’t lift his head as she left his side, moving to rejoin the queen. The two women left Sugawara standing by his horse. The scattered few in the fields waited until the queen had left to resume their movements, but not the prince. He stood, marbled statue, for what felt like an eternity. Daichi closed his eyes, the handkerchief crumpling in his grip. 

Time, as it always had, sprung into action. Sugawara was a blur, up on the horse, trotting quickly, slowing only for a moment by Daichi’s side. 

“I require assistance,” he said stiffly, leading the horse back to the stables. Daichi turned, following on foot, his body a buzzing hive. They said nothing as Daichi helped Sugawara off the horse, moving through the motions of returning the gentle creature to its stall. They said nothing as they walked back towards the castle, Daichi one step behind, as always, lingering like a shadow stuck to Sugawara’s heels. They said nothing as they moved through the halls, their pace even and steady, Sugawara’s chin up and Daichi’s gaze down. They said nothing as they breezed past the guards posted outside the prince’s chambers, said nothing as they moved through the sitting area, said nothing as they reached the private bedroom. 

Daichi closed the door behind them. The wooden clunk of the door settling into place usually brought him comfort. Not today. Finally, Daichi peeled his gaze from the ground. Sugawara’s back was to him. The light streaming through the window seemed cruel in its illumination. 

“My liege,” Daichi started. Sugawara stiffened, as if Daichi had slid a knife between his shoulderblades. 

“Don’t.” The prince’s voice was taut, a wire stretched to its limits. Daichi still couldn’t see his face. He hesitated. He never hesitated, not since the first kiss, the first time Sugawara clutched his face in his cold hands and asked if he could, but here he was, rooted by insecurity and doubt and the ticking of a clock only he could hear. Two weeks. 

“Suga,” he said. The prince slumped, as if Daichi had ripped out the knife. He was waiting for Daichi. Daichi knew. His hands knew where to go, he knew where to rest his chin, knew how to hold the prince tight enough, this side of hurting. It was muscle memory. Perhaps more than that. Still, he could not move. He could only stare. Two weeks. An eternity and the blink of an eye. 

Sugawara turned his head. The sun, like everything else, served him tenderly. 

“Daichi.” The wire of his voice snapped. “Please.”

Like a curse broken, Daichi moved across the room. One arm around the prince’s waist, one arm around his shoulders, Daichi’s mouth pressed against Sugawara’s jaw. The prince’s hands clutched at Daichi’s arms, fingers insistent and desperate, as if he was trying to meld them together. Daichi held him tightly, whispering the prince’s name into cheek as if that could undo anything. Sugawara twisted, turning himself until they were facing each other, his hands now pressed against Daichi’s chest. Daichi tilted his head forward, until their foreheads pressed together, and his fingers dug into the soft fabric of Sugawara’s shirt. He wished he could pretend that this was anything other than what it felt like - final - but he still held Lady Shimizu’s handkerchief. It was a silken reminder of all that was to come, and all that was to go.

“Stop,” Sugawara said. His hands slid upwards, trimmed nails scratching gently against Daichi’s neck, until he was cradling his jaw. “You’re thinking too loud.”

“One of us has to.”

“Not yet,” Sugawara whispered. He tilted his head up, lips brushing against Daichi’s as he spoke. “Not now.” Whatever Daichi had planned to say melted as Sugawara leaned forward, pressing their mouths together with a fierce insistence. When the valet brought his free hand up, cupping the soft satin of the prince’s face, he was met with tears. 

“Koushi,” he breathed, breaking the kiss to look the prince in the eyes. Golden amber, glittering with saltwater. Sugawara pressed his cheek further into Daichi’s hand, turning his face ot press a kiss against the heel of his palm, eyes closing. 

“Please,” Sugawara whispered, his hands coming to curl in Daichi’s shirt. “I can’t -- I can’t think about it now. I only want to think of you.” 

Daichi had never been able to deny Suga anything. Letting the handkerchief fall to the floor, he pulled the prince close, tilted his perfect face upwards ever so slightly. 

“Look at me,” he said, his voice soft, his tone brittle. Sugawara opened his eyes, slow sunrise, and Daichi felt his heart crack in half. 

_I love you,_ he thought. _I_ love _you. Marry me instead._

He said nothing. Instead, he leaned forward, pressing his lips against Suga’s as gently as he had the first time, knowing full well it could be the last.

**Author's Note:**

> me??? posting a prologue and pretending it's a one-shot??? it's more likely than you think. one day i will write daisuga that isn't tinged with melancholy i'm gonna send them on a nice fluffy ice cream date and let them hold each other on the couch or smth i promise. anyway!!! here's this. i hope you enjoyed. one day if the inspiration ever strikes perhaps i'll write the rest (bc u Know the suitor is one oikawa tooru), but i didn't want this to rot in my google docs forever alone. let me know what you thought in the comments below!!! have a good day drink some water!!!


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